Current weather

Oconee County police blotter

Posted: Wednesday, August 20, 2008

The Oconee County Sheriff's Office reported the following incidents:

Arrest: On Aug. 6, deputy Kip Thomas met at the sheriff's office with a 73-year-old Bogart woman who reported the theft of her wallet, which contained credit cards and cash. The woman said she left her purse in a cart at Publix on Experiment Station Road, and when she went back into the store, the wallet was missing. Publix employees said another employee found the purse and turned it in to customer service. Deputy William Evans went to the store, where a manager was watching a video of the event and showed Evans that the employee took the wallet out of the purse before turning it in. The manager confronted the 20-year-old employee, who admitted taking the wallet but said he threw it in the trash and didn't steal anything. He then brought the wallet back without the credit cards and cash. He denied taking the items and said someone had moved the wallet from the trash to the women's bathroom. Evans confronted the employee as he was leaving the store and the deputy said he didn't believe the man's story. Evans told the employee he was going to jail, so he needed to confess. The employee pulled one credit card out of his pocket and said he threw the other one away. He also took $106 out of his wallet. Joel Morton McGilvray, of Elder Mill Road, Watkinsville, was charged with theft by taking and financial transaction card theft.

Attack: On Aug. 6, deputy Pat Holl met with a 21-year-old man at Shady Acres mobile home park in Bogart. The man said that on Aug. 2, he was sleeping on his couch after having a few beers when he heard his dog barking at a Hispanic man at the door. The dog bit the visitor, but it only resulted in scratches, the man told Holl. The next thing the man knew, Oconee County Animal Control officers took his dog, he said. The man said he wanted someone to pay for the Animal Control costs. Holl went to the visitor's house, and he said he was trying to go to see a friend that day but got the wrong house. When he knocked, the dog attacked, and the owner had to let the man inside to get the dog under control. Holl told the dog's owner how to get a warrant.

Arrest: On Aug. 6, deputy Lisa Price met with a man at his home on Birchmore Drive, Athens. The man said he previously had loaned some tools to a young man who was staying next door and later found that someone had entered his garage through a window and taken a number of items, including a rifle. After investigating the burglary and interrogating the neighbor and a juvenile also staying at the residence, 17-year-old Billy Ray Chasteen was arrested and charged in the theft.

Arrest: On Aug. 6, deputy David Gilstrap clocked a motorcycle going 106 mph in a 65 mph zone on Georgia Highway 316 at Mars Hill Road. Gilstrap made eye contact with the driver as he was pulling out, but then the motorcycle took off. Gilstrap chased the motorcycle east on Ga. 316 and radioed his position to another officer. The bike was well in front, weaving in and out of traffic. At Jimmie Daniel Road, the motorcycle took a sharp right, going past a Georgia State Patrol trooper, who told Gilstrap over the radio he clocked the motorcycle at 120 mph. Gilstrap eventually lost the motorcycle, but then the other officer called and said he had stopped the motorcycle off of Mars Hill Road, near Jones Road. The motorcycle driver told Gilstrap he took off because he was scared. The driver, Michael Kerrington Wheless, 20, of Winder was arrested and charged with felony fleeing and attempting to elude, obstruction, speeding, reckless driving and aggressive driving.

Arrest: On Aug. 8, deputy David Gilstrap was patrolling on Georgia Highway 316 when his radar picked up a vehicle traveling 80 mph. After stopping the vehicle, Miguel Ramirez-Gonzales, 30, of Tucker was arrested for being an unlicensed driver and speeding.

Theft: On Aug. 8, deputy David Burchett was dispatched to a home on Castle Drive, Watkinsville, where a 35-year-old man said someone broke the windows in his Honda, but nothing was stolen. However, the thief also entered a Ford Explorer and stole a stereo system and six speakers.

Theft: On Aug. 8, deputy David Burchett was dispatched to a home on Rose Drive for entering auto cases. The victim reported his pickup was entered and a stereo was stolen. Also, deputy Laura Teet was dispatched to another home on the same street where the victim said his Jeep Wrangler was entered an a CD/DVD player, valued at $500, was stolen.

Theft: On Aug. 8, deputy Laura Teet was dispatched to a home on Walnut Street, where a man said a set of chrome car rims were stolen out of his yard.

Damage: On Aug. 8, deputy David Burchett met with a man who said someone went onto his property on Old Farmington Road and broke the windows in a 1989 Nissan pickup.

Theft: On Aug. 8, deputy Scott Underwood spoke with an employee of McDonald's on Epps Bridge Parkway who said someone stole his Trek 21-speed bicycle while it was parked outside the restaurant between 10 a.m. and 4 p.m.

Arrest: On Aug. 8, deputy Chad Parr was dispatched to Bell's on Hog Mountain Road where he transported a shoplifting suspect to jail. The man was identified as Brett Michael Shuman, 18, of Hillsboro Road, Bishop.

Theft: On Aug. 9, deputy Michael Taylor was dispatched to a home on Ramser Drive, Bogart, where a woman said someone entered her unlocked vehicle and stole an iPod with a car adapter.

Arrest: On Aug. 9, deputy David Burchett was dispatched to the Friendship Recreational Club on North Macon Highway, where someone entered the pool area and tore down signs about swimming rules, cut four umbrellas and left beer bottles throughout the area. No one is allowed in the pool after 10 p.m. and no alcohol is allowed, the club president told Burchett.

Arrest: On Aug. 9, deputy Chad Parr was dispatched to Wal-Mart to transport a shoplifting suspect to jail. The suspect, Amber Marie Riddle, 27, of Monroe also was wanted by Monroe police.

Fraud: On Aug. 10, deputy Laura Teet met with the district manager for Waffle House at the Epps Bridge Parkway location, where an employee had been fired that day. The man said a customer from out of town had called him to complain that an extra $5 had been charged on her credit card following a payment she made at the restaurant. The manager checked and found that $5 had been written into the tip area, but the customer told him she had paid the tip in cash. The manager checked some other transactions and found that the employee had written in tips on five receipts for a total of $18. He also found that the employee's cash register was $37 over in cash and she could not provide an explanation. Teet called the employee and she said she would come to the sheriff's office and provide an explanation as part of the investigation.

Arrest: On Aug. 10, deputy Scott Underwood was dispatched to a vehicle wreck on U.S. Highway 78, where the vehicle had overturned. Underwood spoke with the driver, Gregory Alan Luper, 47, of Candler, N.C., and detected the smell of alcohol. Luper was transported to an Athens hospital for back pain and a blood sample also was drawn for the alcohol test. Luper was charged with reckless driving, driving too fast for conditions, being an unlicensed driver and having an expired tag. A DUI charge depends on the outcome of the blood test.

Burglary: On Aug. 10, deputy Laura Teet was dispatched to Pinewood South Mobile Home Park where a man said he came home from work and discovered someone had entered his home and took about $280 cash. The thief also took four packs of Camel Light cigarettes and some Trojan condoms.

Theft: On Aug. 11, deputy Lisa Price was serving a civil paper at Wal-Mart on Epps Bridge Parkway when a woman approached her to report her purse had been stolen. The woman said she realized she didn't have her purse after leaving the parking lot but couldn't find it in the cart when she came back to look. Price helped the woman look for a few minutes but they couldn't find it. Later that day, the woman called Price to report that her husband checked their credit card activity and found three charges were made after the woman's purchase at Wal-Mart.

Vandalism: On Aug. 11, deputy Pat Holl was dispatched to Fern Hill subdivision off Malcom Bridge Road in Bogart. He met with a man who has a house under contract there. The man said he came by that day to check on the house, which is under construction, and saw that someone had broken in and damaged the cabinets and Sheetrock. Door frames in the house apparently had been hit by a claw hammer and there were holes everywhere in the walls, cabinets and ceiling. The man estimated the damage at $16,000.

The Watkinsville Police Department reported the following incidents:

Wreck: On Aug. 4, a Ford F-150 pickup ran into the rear of a Toyota Camry at Experiment Station Road and North Main Street. No one was injured, but Bernard Amiot, 65, of Keeneland Court was cited for following too closely.

Damage: On Aug. 7, police were called to Main Street, where someone used a pellet gun to damage windows in five businesses - Main Street Drapery, Elizabeth Ann's Florist, Circa Antiques, Byram Realty and Main Street Salon. The next day, two more businesses were found targeted. Glass was shattered at Sunshine Cycles and at Sumner Properties.

Arrest: On Aug. 7, police stopped a vehicle and arrested John David Wagner, 53, of Barnett Shoals Road for driving while his license was suspended.

The Oconee County Fire Department responded to the following incidents: